Dehradun: Uttarakhand govt has decided not to reclaim the nazul land leased to St. Joseph’s Academy on Rajpur Road, Dehradun. The decision was made during a meeting chaired by chief secretary Radha Raturi with senior officials from the housing department, Mussoorie Dehradun Development Authority (MDDA), district administration, and police. The meeting was held under the direction of chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami.
Raturi directed the school to arrange parking for students and parents within its premises to ease traffic congestion on the main road. Established in 1934, St. Joseph’s Academy was allotted 86 bighas of nazul land on a 90-year lease. Of this, 66 bighas were used for the construction of the school building and other structures, while 20 bighas remain vacant. The lease expired in Jan, prompting a visit by Dehradun district authorities on Tuesday to assess land use and parking availability.
Raturi also instructed the housing department to proceed with the lease renewal as per regulations. Secretary, housing, R Meenakshi Sundaram, who attended the meeting told TOI, “The question of not renewing the lease never arises. There are thousands of students in the school, and we cannot make a decision which is against them. However, traffic in Dehradun has increased significantly over the last 10-15 years, and the school is located at a site which often sees severe congestion.”
He added that the state expects “a little cooperation from the school authorities,” suggesting they use their vacant land to build a multi-level parking facility or adjust the boundary wall to accommodate vehicles.
“We cannot ignore the increasing traffic and parking issues. The parking of vehicles by parents outside the school worsens the situation. We are asking the school to make parking arrangements in its premises to help resolve the traffic problem,” Sundaram added.